We’ve got great work…all we need are some great people!

As a Lutheran Digest representative, you collect the advertising sponsorships necessary for participating churches to receive their free Digest copies. These activities are conducted with the knowledge and continued permission of the participating pastors, so contact with them is first requested. You are paid a commission for each sponsorship you collect, plus a mileage bonus based on distance traveled. We also provide you with a list of the previous issue’s sponsors, half to two-thirds of which renew their ad on a national average.

The key to our program is flexibility. This opportunity is available whether you’re looking for full-time work or as a supplement to your income. Keep in mind that each territory is worked only once per year, so if you’re looking to derive a full-time income, travel may be involved (depending on where you live). Once a territory is started, you’ll have 30 days to finish. Most new agents take the full 30 days; many experienced agents complete a territory in 10-14 days.

No previous sales experience is required. Our agents come from all walks of life: homemakers, farmers, office and factory workers, retirees. Most have no previous public relations or sales experience and have successfully done (and are doing) this work. Determination to succeed, energy, organization, and a pleasant personality are the traits of a successful sales agent.

To get started, all you need is a dependable vehicle, good people and organizational skills, and a strong determination to succeed.

As an independent “business” operator, your income (commission and bonus) potential reflects your income needs, your effectiveness in performing the work, and your willingness to travel to the available work. With that said, pre-tax earnings for one territory average between $600-$1500.

The number of territories you work or plan on working determines when your commission is paid. Part-time agents working 2 territories or less per year are paid the full commission owed to you plus your mileage bonus after the territory is worked to completion.

Lutheran Digest Sales Agents are paid two ways:

• Weekly for cash sales (payment collected at the time an ad is sold).

As an independent contractor, you are responsible for your own FICA, Medicare, travel, subsistence, vehicle, insurance, and other sundry taxes and expenses. The plus side is that expenses related to performing Lutheran Digest sales agent work are tax-deductible. (NOTE: Tax-deductibility varies with individual circumstances. The Lutheran Digest is not a tax advisory service, and interested parties are directed to their own tax professionals for advice on their specific circumstances.)

Our territories are formed where clusters of Lutheran churches in relative close proximity to one another have elected to receive our magazine free of charge. These church clusters (or “keys” as we call them) form our territories.

You begin by selecting from a list of available keys. If a selected territory is worked to satisfactory completion (that is, to the assigned sales dollar goal and within the allotted 30-day time frame), you’re given the opportunity to work it again the next year. Successful work two years in a row (unless there are mitigating circumstances) entitles you to work that key year to year thereafter, provided the required sales performance is maintained.

On average, excluding to-and-from travel time, a sales area should take 10 to 14 days to complete. If travel is required to and from the sales area, you may be away from home upwards of 2-3 weeks.

Each Lutheran Digest sales area is worked once a year for the year. If you wish to derive more full-time income from Lutheran Digest work, you will have to do some traveling.

Depending on where you live, that can be across the county, across the state, or, sometimes, out of state. How long you’re away from home depends on several factors: the size of the territory, the distance from your home, and your level of experience.

You might be wondering if the work could be done from home, via telephone or email. In theory, the answer is yes; however, over 50 years of experience has taught us that nothing beats face-to-face contact for sales effectiveness. Besides, in-person contact is what differentiates The Lutheran Digest from most other periodicals serving the Lutheran church. It sets you apart from the competition and better assures your sales success.

Depending on your location, arrangements can be made for you to tag along with an experienced Lutheran Digest sales agent or agent couple where fundamentals of the work can be demonstrated. (You’re not allowed to actually sell advertising, however, until after signing a non-binding sales agent agreement. The Lutheran Digest cannot pay compensation unless you’re “under contract.”) Should you decide to become a full-fledged agent at that point, your work involvement and exposure intensifies so that by the end of several days, you should be ready to go out on your own.

We supply you with all necessary sales aids and supplies, including a unique “renewal packet.” In this packet is a list of previous issue’s advertising sponsors and their account

history. Also included are copies of any correspondence generated between the sponsors/churches and The Lutheran Digest office for that area. Agents are as informed as The Lutheran Digest can make them when they enter a sales area to begin work.

While the number varies from sales area to sales area, on national average, nearly two-third of the advertisers renew. This makes your job just a bit easier, since only about one-third of the advertisers may need to be replaced in each area. You won’t be “starting from scratch” each time.